And finally…whisky no-more!

The accidental spill, which occurred in June, was the equivalent of 85,000 regular bottles at Loch Lomond Distillers, producers of brands including ­Little Mill, Glengarry and Glen Scotia.

A spokesperson for Loch Lomond Group, which also runs distilleries in Campbeltown, Argyllshire, and in ­Alexandria, Dunbartonshire, near Loch Lomond, said: “We immediately reported it to the authorities and have been working closely with them to ensure no recurrence.”

The Health and Safety Executive and Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) is launching an inquiry into the leak, some of which went into the local River Ayr.

Confirming the incident, a SEPA spokesperson said: “An investigation was carried out at the Loch Lomond Group bonded warehouse in Catrine, following a discharge of whisky from the facility.

“It’s understood that due to a leak inside the building, a significant quantity of whisky managed to escape through the floor of the warehouse.

“It’s likely the majority of the whisky was absorbed by the ground beneath the warehouse but a small amount did manage to enter the drainage system and discharge directly into the River Ayr.

“Following numerous assessments of the ­watercourse by SEPA officers, the discharge was not found to have had any significant impact on the surface water environment.”

The June leak follows another incident in 2011 when a mistake by a delivery tanker saw 6,600 litres of Scotch spill into the River Ayr after it was pumped into the wrong vat which was already full.

Loch Lomond Group, while under different ownership, was fined £12,000 over the accident.